Good news for parents: we may have just found the cheapest children’s toy ever. It’s a cardboard box.
We know that kids love making forts out of these things, but did you know that there are so many other possibilities? 51 possibilities, in fact. We’ve mapped them all out for you here so next time you have to keep your kid busy, you will have some tricks up your sleeve.
Who needs a treehouse when you have a whole shopping strip?! Dress the box up as a local bakery and post office and the kids will be entertained for days.
In addition to the kitchen, you can even create a stove top for them to “cook.” Don’t worry, there’s no real gas or fire, so it is one hundred percent safe!
If you’re feeling ambitious and want to fill an entire room with boxes, make a huge maze! It will be so much fun to get lost in and you won’t have to pay a ton of money for it!
Your children want to make phone calls, but you don’t want to pay the bill. And they are way too young to even have anyone to call. Here’s a great alternative.
If your child has expressed some potential interest in music, make them a guitar! It would be a great way to get them to learn the instrument and they can pretend to be a rockstar.
This one is for the whole family! Cut some boxes into one of your favorite animals and hang it on the wall as decoration. It’s like taxidermy, except no animal was harmed.
Your kid deserves the world, so build one for them. Or at least start with a city. Build a bunch of towers and stand them next to each other, just like a skyline!
Your kids may be too young to drink coffee, but that doesn’t mean they can’t pretend. Have them be a barista and serve “customers” in their own little coffee shop!
Keep the roads inside the box! With just one box, use markers to draw the roads on the inside. The driveable little town will be perfect for their small toys.
It is such a smart idea to turn a box into a full-blown game! It’s interactive, all you need is some golf balls and a golf club. The kids will have so much fun.
You will want to be careful with this one… But with the proper spotter and someone nearby to watch, this could be really fun for the kids. Basically all you have to do is lay the cardboard flat on a staircase!
If you loved the golf idea, you will probably love this too! Try making a ring toss out of the cardboard. The children will think the fun games will never end.
This is a very cute activity that will for sure keep the kids busy! Have them write letters or draw pictures, fold them up in an envelope, and then put them into their faux mail box. They’ll be eager for a response!
The children’s toy puppies need a home too! Build them a mini house and have the kids take care of them. It is guaranteed to warm your heart and it will be fun for them.
Use some paint to decorate it plus a tube to create a fake lens. Now your kid has a camera and they can go around snapping all the pics their hearts desire!
This is cute, but it is also just downright beautiful… Make a spiraling tree house with a green top, swings, and put some fairy dolls in there. What a whimsical land!
This one will work great especially for the holidays! Dress some houses up with stripes, greens, and reds and line them all up next to each other. You’ve got a cute neighborhood now.
Similar to the cardboard purses, if your kid is looking to play dress up, gift them with some cardboard hats! It’ll be so much fun and they can pretend to be a magician, tap dancer, or whatever else comes to mind.
This one is a classic for a reason. Simply hang a mini curtain on the inside edge of the box — perhaps on a rod — and away the kids go! They can grab some puppets and put on a show for their friends!
So your kid always wanted to run their own doughnut shop… Well now, they can! After you build them this doughnut shop window, they will be selling them by the dozens.
Just in case your kid doesn’t have enough toys, make them some cardboard mannequins! It can help them with all of the puppet shows they’re about to put on with their new cardboard stage.
51 Ways cardboard boxes can be used to keep the kids entertained
Kirsten Spruch
12.11.19
Good news for parents: we may have just found the cheapest children’s toy ever. It’s a cardboard box.
We know that kids love making forts out of these things, but did you know that there are so many other possibilities? 51 possibilities, in fact. We’ve mapped them all out for you here so next time you have to keep your kid busy, you will have some tricks up your sleeve.
